Thank a Lineman on National
Lineman Appreciation Day
The lineman occupation originally began with the widespread use of the telegraph back in the 1840s. Telegraph lines could be strung on trees, but wooden poles were quickly adopted as the method of choice. The lineman term was used for those who set wooden poles and strung wire. The term continued in use with the invention of the telephone in the 1870s and the beginning of electrification in the 1890s.
KPUB Graduates
Two New Linemen from its Apprenticeship Program
Congratulations to Andrew Stevens and Zachary Guinn for recently completing our apprenticeship program to become KPUB linemen.
KPUB’s Apprenticeship Program is four years in length and is registered with the Department of Labor. To become a lineman, one must complete 8,000 hours of on-the-job training and 144 hours of bookwork on their own time. Once completed, graduates receive a certification from the Department of Labor that will carry throughout their careers.
KPUB has graduated 25 linemen since the program was established in 2006.
Between the 1890s and 1930s, being an electrical lineman was considered an extremely hazardous profession. While the profession has made many improvements and established industry standards dedicated to keeping line workers safe, the work is carried out in a very hazardous environment and it’s not for the faint of heart.
April 18 is National Lineman Appreciation Day, a time to celebrate the hard work and dedication of the line workers who keep the lights on for our community.
We proudly salute our KPUB linemen for their tireless efforts through dangerous, hazardous conditions to keep the power flowing reliably and our community safe. Linemen are on call and have to leave their families at all hours of the day and night to care for yours while they restore power. They maintain 684 miles of power lines across our 146-square-mile service area.
To honor our KPUB linemen, we invite you to thank a lineman for the essential work they do. If you spot any of our linemen working in your neighborhood, take a moment and let them know you appreciate them.
“Thank you to your KPUB team for their very quick response and professionalism. Early this morning, we had a squirrel pop a breaker on a transformer. By the time I called your office, they had already dispatched KPUB employees to our location and had us back up within minutes. Thank you!”
—Kerrville Daily Times (January 2023)
Remember, your power works when you flip that light switch because of the work they do! Without our linemen, we could not deliver safe, reliable and lowcost power to the homes and businesses in our Hill Country community.
Mike Wittler KPUB General Manager & CEO
KERRVILLE PUBLIC UTILITY BOARD
KPUB is Always on Call to Keep the Lights on Safely & Reliably!
THE KPUB | SPRING 2023
KPUB Plugged Into Our Community
Add Your HVAC System to your Spring-Cleaning Checklist!
If you’ve started spring cleaning, you might want to consider adding your HVAC system to your checklist. With the summertime heat on the way, make sure your HVAC system is as efficient as possible. The weather can have a huge impact on your energy usage in Texas and, for most customers, it’s the single biggest factor affecting your electric bill in the summertime.
By scheduling an HVAC tune-up during the spring, you can make sure your air conditioning system is in prime working condition before the heat hits (and avoid unpleasant high bill surprises!)
A tune up can:
2023 Customer Satisfaction Survey
Your feedback is important to us. Help us improve by taking the 2023 customer satisfaction survey.
KPUB partners with Great Blue Research to conduct an annual customer satisfaction survey to measure the community’s overall satisfaction with our ability to provide safe, reliable and competitively priced electric service.
Lower your energy bills
Keep you more comfortable
Even pay for itself
Visit kpub.com/saveenergy for more tips!
To tell us how we are doing and help us identify improvements, please complete our survey online at kpub.com/survey. All responses will remain confidential.
Photos: L to R: 1st row, KPUB volunteering at a local food pantry event, 1/30, Leadership Kerr County community solar field tour, 2/14, Center Point Elementary arc & spark demo, 1/27. 2nd row, Ringing the bell for the Salvation Army, 12/16, KPUB volunteering at a local food pantry event, 2/27, Hunt Elementary arc & spark demo, 2/10. 3rd row, KPUB community blood drive, 12/1, Habitat for Humanity volunteer day, 12/8.Need Help Paying your Utility Bills?
Texas Utility Help is accepting new applications for utility bill payment assistance.
The Texas Department of Housing & Community Affairs recently directed an additional $48 million from the Federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to support low-income homeowners and renters who need help paying energy bills. Additional funding is also available for water and wastewater bills. Visit TexasUtilityHelp.com for details or
to get started on your application today. The program will accept new applications for energy assistance until available funds are depleted. If you have questions, please call Texas Utility Help at 855.566.2057, M-F, 8 a.m.-6 p.m.
For additional local assistance agencies who help with bill payment assistance, please visit kpub.com/community.
Neighbors Helping Neighbors
Mutual aid is neighbors helping neighbors in need, whether those neighbors are next door or thousands of miles away. More than 1,100 public power and rural cooperative utilities belong to the national public power mutual aid network. These utilities sign up to give and receive help for power restoration after a disaster.
KPUB is part of this network, and we’ve been on the receiving end once during our company’s history after the Memorial Day storms in May 2020. After this storm, we received help from Central Texas Electric Cooperative and three other utilities.
KPUB was able to return the favor and help CTEC restore power during Winter Storm Uri in 2021 and recently during Winter Storm Mara. Four construction crews comprised of 14 line workers helped to restore power to CTEC customers February 2-3, 2023, in the Tierra Linda Ranch, Wilderness Community, Whiskey Canyon Ranch and Saddlewood Subdivision of Kerr County.
*terms & exclusions apply
EARN UP TO for
improvements
energy-efficiency
IN KPUB REBATES $900 kpub.com/saveenergy
Photo: KPUB Lineman Apprentice, Nathaniel Crabtree, restoring power in the Tierra Linda community.
KERRVILLE PUBLIC UTILITY BOARD
2250 Memorial Blvd Kerrville, Texas 78028
830.257.3050 | KPUB.COM
COMMUNITY EVENTS
Community Weatherization Event
SATURDAY, JUNE 3, 2023
11 A.M. – 1 P.M.
Learn how you can save energy and money—and possibly have improvements made to your residence for free!
Team members from KPUB and the Alamo Area Council of Governments (AACOG) will be in attendance to discuss:
• Home energy-saving tips and materials
• AACOG’s free funding for energy-saving home improvements*
*must income qualify and meet eligibility criteria
KPUB will be giving away complimentary box fans for the first 50 attendees and sponsoring a drawing for a FREE smart Nest thermostat.
Learn more at kpub.com/weatherization.
KPUB Community Blood Drive
THURSDAY, JUNE 22, 2023
9 A.M. – 2 P.M.
By appointment only. Sign up now to help save lives! Learn more at kpub.com/blooddrive.
Get started with SmartHub!
You just need your KPUB account number to get started. Simply search for SmartHub in your phone app store or register through our website at kpub.com/smarthub-app/.
Need help using or registering for SmartHub? Please contact our KPUB customer service team at 830.257.3050. We are happy to help!
